|
Worldwide Trips
> Volunteer Journal > Romania Trip - Galen's Journal
Romania Trip - Galen's Journal
Galen Hora - ELCA
August 4, 2007 - Day of arrival
 Today the first of many amazing things happened—we found each other easily at the Bucharest Airport. Mia Iordache, the Host Coordinator in Craiova, and Adi Magda, the Volunteer Coordinator for Habitat Romania, were there to meet us, all smiles and full of energy. Their excellent English and friendly greetings put us at ease immediately. They were glad to see us, and we were glad to have arrived without incident (although one member did take a detour through Budapest on the way).
We boarded a large van for our trip to Craiova, which took us about four hours, plus time for a meal on the way at an enchanting inn/restaurant decorated with ears of corn, stuffed animals, and clever paintings. We traveled along a major thoroughfare, past parched corn and grain fields, occasionally lurching through small villages. We remarked how much the early terrain looked like southwestern Minnesota. Later, bluffs in the distance gave a feeling of western South Dakota. Here and there cows, goats, and horses dotted the landscape. It was obvious that the summer drought and the long stretch of temperatures in the 90s had taken a toll on the countryside.
Adi proved to be a rich source of information about Romania and the work of Habitat. He gladly answered questions as we rode along.
Our initial impression, as we came into Craiova, a city of about 300,000, was that of the struggle of a people to rebuild their community in the decades following Communism. Everywhere we noticed the contrast between architecturally ornate buildings built in the last century and shabby, grey, non-descript boxes built for the utilitarian communist era. Cars whizzed by helter-skelter. Gaunt horses pulled ancient wagons along the edge of the road, like Amish buggies in the Midwest.
The Vila Lido was to be our place of lodging for the week. It was made up of four separate little buildings, perhaps apartments at one time. No one room was designed like another, or colored like another. Ours was hot pink! The shower leaked out onto the floor; the towels were rough. But it was clean—and there was air conditioning. It would be fine.
August 5 - Day One
We worshipped this morning at an Orthodox church nearby, where Father George Zamphir is the priest. The service had begun when we arrived, but we were shown to a set of chairs toward the front, set out especially for us as guests. A young worship assistant, dressed in elaborate brocade robes, chanted the liturgy in a rich voice. He was answered antiphonally by a little male choir, who also sang with deep resonance. The service provided a beautiful time of reflection, much needed by our group. Toward the end of the service, Father Zamphir appeared from the altar area to deliver the sermon. He is the president of the Craiova Habitat board and welcomed us warmly. He remained after the service for conversation as well. We also met the Executive Director of Habitat Craiova, Nicku, who is officed in the Habitat building constructed on the church property next door.
Following worship, on our walk to lunch, we passed a large Orthodox church and learned about icons from the resident priest.
Sunday evening we were privileged to meet the families with whom we would be working at the build site. Mihail (a train station worker) and Stela (a nurse) Buzatu live in a two room flat with their two daughters, Miheala, five years, and Andrada, a new baby. They share a kitchen and bathroom down the hallway with four other families. The second family, Mihai (a truck driver) and Oana Ogarca live with their children Johanan, one year, and Naomi, six years, along with Oana’s mother in a flat with two bedrooms, a kitchen, and its own bath. Another baby is on the way. Both apartments were modestly furnished and had to be reached by climbing dark stairs in dimly lit stairways. We were told that apartment buildings, like those we visited, were erected quickly and cheaply during the communist era as housing for workers. They are now crumbling and the roofs leaking, although some work is being done to restore the better structures. We were warmly greeted by both families and offered treats and many smiles.
We were told that in Romania 150,000 families such as the two we met qualify for Habitat projects. Availability of affordable land is a problem, as well as financing in general and volunteer assistance.
We returned to our rooms this night, eager to begin, but also filled with many questions and some concern about what kind of work we would be doing at the build site. So far, no one has been able to tell us.
.
August 6 - Day Two
 A friend once told me that there are times when it seems that God is smiling upon us, times when the blessings of God seem to be almost visible to the naked eye. As we gathered in the courtyard of the Lido to leave for our first day at the site, it began to rain. In this area that had seen little rain in recent weeks and months, the rain was indeed a gift, a “smile of God.” After a short taxi ride with our friendly cab driver, we arrived at the site, which was fenced in all sides and had a vineyard in the back and a narrow, rough road in front. Our first task was to receive a brief orientation from our site director, who showed us how to properly use the tools and develop safe practices. After thousands of miles of travel and weeks of preparation and anticipation, we finally began our work.
The first task was to move a large pile of sand/gravel from the center of the site to the side. Others began the task of clearing the land and removing the sod, while the site manager and Mihail (one of the family members we met the night before) marked the dimensions of the duplex. To most of us, the dimensions of the house seemed small, but after visiting their current homes the evening before, the possibilities and the promise of this house was a gift beyond measure. To move from a small two room apartment where four people shared what had once been one room, where they needed to go down the gall to either cook or use the bathroom, their share of the small duplex would seem enormous. The other family of four (soon to be five) shared a larger two bedroom apartment with her mother. Perhaps they will be able to move into their new home in time to welcome the baby.
The day was long. The work was challenging. But we worked will together and were able to shift from one job to another and help one another out as needed. In Spanish they have a saying, “side by side,” “lado i lado.” With our new Romanian friends, we worked “lado i lado,” side by side.
As the day ended, the trenches had begun to deepen and the work of the next few days was surely to involve much digging with pickaxes, shovels, and spades. And, if we are blessed by another “smile of God,” the rain will fall each night as a sign of blessing for the foundation of these two new homes and as a gift to lighten our work load the following day.
August 7 - Day Three
 The second day in Craiova brought more rain. But luckily it stopped before we arrived at the site. Most people were worried that the trenches would be extremely full of water and muddy. Much to our surprise, when we arrived only part of the trenches has water.
The weather was firly cool and overcast, which made such hard work bearable. Our job today was to dig more trenches where the foundation would go. The trenches had to be 80 cm deep and about 30 cm wide. We had to dig, dig, dig.
It was quite easy at first because the rain softened the first few inches of the ground. But the under layer was dry and hard to move. Some people would pour water on the sand to soften it.
Dig, dig, dig—that was the duty. A couple of times throughout the day we had sprinkles, but nothing to worry about. In some places we were able to get 80 cm deep, but in most places we only got close.
At the end of the day the trenches were fairly deep and the piles of sand we had dug out were quite high. The progress we made was immense. We should be able to mix the concrete tomorrow.
August 8 - Day Four
The third day of work on the site was very hot and our strength was quickly zapped! However, the community building among us continued to be a joy. It is good to have the family members join us at break time, lunch time and for devotions.
From Psalm 127:1, “Unless they Lord builds the house, it’s builders labor in vain.” The Lord is building this house, not only in Romania, but in all of our hearts. We (the strange Americans) have been embraced warmly. I will carry the culture, traditions, and values home with me. This is the Tiaspiye of God (community).
August 9 - Day Five
If ever there was a day that was needed to lighten our spirits and our hearts, today was that day. GOD HAS PROVIDED!! The day before was very difficult for everyone in the group. The digging and the hard work had finally taken its toll on us. Not quite sure that the day would bring, we showed up ready to work. Our wonderful leader handed out sheets of paper that had Romanian and English. This was good because communication had been slow moving. The effort made by our group was much noticed by our new Romanian friends. Mihail showed excitement when normally frustration came about trying to communicate. As we were working together he spoke in English as best he could, as I tried in Romanian. He proved to have a sense of humor as he nicknamed me “Snow White,” due to my dark hair and white legs. This great morning set the tone for a laughter-filled afternoon.
As guests of Father Zamphir, we visited the Orthodox Seminary in Craiova. Two young people joined us from the families whom we were helping to build the house, Cipicu and Christina. After touring the two beautiful chapels, we sat down to have an amazing vegetarian lunch and theological conversation with Father Zamphir.
Next we took a short (quite literally) drive into the forest. Excited to see the countryside and the Romanian forest, we stopped a few hundred yards into the forest and pulled over. Our hostess, Mia, opened the door and stepped out. This was our tour of the forest. Laughter ensued for a long time. It seems as Americans we enjoy a leisurely drive to see our surroundings, while Romanians get right to the point!
The day ended with the opportunity to see some folk dancing and music in the town centre and a nice dinner. This day has been for me the most memorable. Although there is a language barrier, we proved we could move forward and make wonderful new friends and see some great humorous personalities. I am thankful for this time to see, hear, and learn. What an amazing world we live in.
August 10 - Day Six
 The day began and ended with the washing of rain—a quick shower at the work site and a thunderstorm at night during dinner. The gift of clouds softened our work conditions until after lunch.
We began concrete work, learning much (a. that a cement mixer and generator were elusive, b. cones of sand and concrete followed by craters of water) expanding our construction skills. What a gift our gift of wheelbarrows became (our group purchased two wheelbarrows for Habitat Craiova) at a time of hauling concrete. At the end of the day we had poured 2 ¾ of the sides.
The spirit between us warmed, with “Chipi baby” and calling Adrianu and Dan “Hekyl and Jekyl,” and dialoguing and complimenting workers and smiling and laughing. Adrianu (Mihai’s father) marveled us with “breaking bread” hospitality, furnishing us with clear honey and home baked bread for morning break. Additionally, he shared sardines, potted meat/spam and goat/sheep cheese.
The “Romanian railroad” on an all-American stampede came roaring. It took a while to translate at first, but it seemed that Mihai’s mother-in-law would “visit” Dan in America “permanently,” and others would come for shorter visits.
A poignant moment came when Mihail came privately to Galen and Dan and said, ‘I just want to thank you very much for all of the hard work that you have done.” Looking us both in the eye. It was truly a kairos moment of the week.
A marvelous evening at a genuine, traditional Romanian restaurant was spent. The first course—as all courses—were family style and featured coldcuts, cheeses, and vegetables. The main course had cabbage folls, polenta, port, etc.—a bountiful feast. Potent plum brandy warmed our taste buds and ended the curiosity about the longed-for drink. A folk band and theological discussion with Father Zamphir, his wife and his son, Tony, and his wife, Ramona, rounded out the evening.
Prior to the meal, we met in Adrianne’s room and shared the day with her, as she needed to be brought up to date after missing the workday due to an ailment. We have many laughs about the events of the day. While there was some debate on the definition of “crater” over against “inverted cone,” we were graced with a day far in excess of any or our imaginations. Thanks be to God!
August 11 - Day Seven
This was our final day at the work site and the day to say goodbye to our Romanian friends. What a roller coaster of emotions: happy to be going home to see loves ones and sleep in our own beds, but sad to part with the fun-loving, hard-working people we have come to know this week; tired and sore from digging, shoveling, and pick-axing, but proud and satisfied with how much we accomplished in a short week. Since the women were prohibited from mixing cement or using the wheelbarrows, we had some down time when we weren’t shoveling sand. It was frustrating to be denied doing things we were capable of, but we wanted to be respectful of their culture. It was fun to watch the joking and camaraderie of the men while they worked side by side. I’m amazed by how well we have learned to communicate without knowing each others’ languages. It has been fun to learn Romanian words from them and teach them English words.
We had a moving closing circle at the work site with hugs, tears, and so many thanks. I feel we should be thanking them for their openness to us, their example of hard work and family devotion, and the warmth and love we felt while working with them.
Their generosity was evident at the evening barbecue where the families prepared the food and served us. It was a delight for a “bunica” (grandmother) like me to see the children playing and laughing. I even got to hold baby Andrada. I was touched when we arrived to see that Adrian and Chipi had gotten haircuts and put on dress clothes for the occasion. I was moved to tears when Hihail kissed my hand and thanked me for helping his family. The picnic was cut short by a sudden thunderstorm, but we made the best of it by crowding into the shed. One last wild taxi ride and we were back at the Lido to pack for leaving on Sunday morning. The memories of this trip—the people, the work, Craiova—will stay with me always. Thanks be to God.
August 12 - Day Eight
It is 8:00 am and we’re ready to go. Nicku is here to see us off and say thank you one more time on behalf of Habitat Craiova. Mia will travel with us, riding in the bouncy van eight hours, extending her responsible hospitality to the very end of out time in Romania. Victor, our effervescent taxi driver for the week, came for his farewell. Money suspiciously missing from one of our team’s personal belongings was graciously reimbursed by the Lido owner, without question.
The return trip to Bucharest was a reversal of our trip a week earlier. Instead of apprehension, we felt a reluctance to leave. Instead of ignorance, we felt that we had gained some small bits of insight into Romanian life and culture. Instead of encountering strangers, we were leaving friends. The crops looked greener along the way because of recent rain storms. We passed familiar landmarks, like the Soviet era hammer and sickle on a huge sign peering out from a passing forest and the little roadside inn where we ate our first meal.
After dropping Katie at the airport for an early flight, the rest of us spent the afternoon at a outdoor cultural museum, where typical buildings of the Romanian country had been moved and restored in a village-like setting.
One by one we said goodbyes, some to board planes, others to remain for another day or two to travel to the Black Sea or explore more of Bucharest.
|
